Fast fourier transform (FFT) addressing apparatus and method

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for generating memory addresses for accessing and storing data in an FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) computation is provided. The FFT computation is typically performed by computing a plurality of FFT butterflies belonging to a plurality of ranks. The apparatus includes a butterfly counter for determining the current FFT butterfly being computed. The butterfly counter produces a plurality of butterfly carries. A rank counter for determining the rank of said current FFT butterfly being computed produces a rank number. Coupled to the rank and butterfly counters is incremental curcuitry, which generates an incremental number in response to the rank number and the butterfly carries. An adder circuitry coupled to the incremental circuitry adds the incremental number and a plurality of memory addresses to produce the FFT data memory addresses.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to the field of FFT computing circuits, and more particularly to FFT memory addressing apparatus and method for performing the same.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) is the generic name for a class of computationally efficient algorithms that implement the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) and are widely used in the field of digital signal processing. With the advent of integrated circuits (IC), near real time digital signal processing has become possible. However, circuit designers are still striving for faster and better FFT IC devices.

In a typical computing system, the most time consuming operation is usually associated with memory. This is evident in the many schemes which have been developed to boost memory access time to increase the overall speed of computing systems.

The FFT algorithm is especially memory access and storage intensive. For example, in order to compute a radix-4 DIF FFT butterfly, four pieces of data and three twiddle coefficients are read from memory and four resultant data are written back into memory. In an N-point radix-4 decimation-in-frequency (DIF) FFT, there are a total of 2Nlog₄ N pieces of data and intermediate data to be accessed and stored and a total of (3N/4)log₄ N twiddle coefficients to be accessed. In other words, to compute a 64-point radix-4 DIF FFT, 192 data memory reads and 192 data memory writes and 144 memory reads for the twiddle coefficients must be performed. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide adequate memory arrangement to accommodate all the data and coefficients.

In computing the FFT butterflies going from one rank to the next, the output data of the butterfly computations of the former become the input data of the latter, where the order and grouping of the data vary from one rank to the next. It is therefore necessary to ensure that correct data is accessed from memory for each butterfly computation.

To further increase speed, a fully parallel implementation of an FFT circuit may be desirable. In such a parallel FFT circuit, it is preferable that the four pieces of data and the three twiddle coefficients are available substantially simultaneously for each butterfly computation.

It is apparent from the foregoing that memory access for an FFT circuit is not trivial. Not only a large number of data are accessed from memory, but a large number of resultant data are also stored back into memory for use in future computations. For each butterfly computation, the data and twiddle coefficient must also be obtained substantially simultaneously. Furthermore, for each memory access and storage operation, the address must be correctly computed and referenced.

It is therefore desirable to increase the speed of FFT memory access for the purpose of obtaining and storing FFT computational data and twiddle coefficients. It is further desirable to devise a scheme to access and store the data and twiddle coefficients systematically so that correct data and twiddle coefficients are obtained in a timely fashion for each butterfly computation. In particular, a need has arisen for FFT memory addressing apparatus and method that provides for the above-mentioned desirable features.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, FFT memory addressing apparatus and method are provided which substantially eliminate or reduce disadvantages and problems associated with prior addressing schemes.

In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided apparatus for generating memory addresses for accessing and storing data in an FFT computation. The FFT computation is performed by computing a plurality of FFT butterflies belonging to a plurality of ranks. The apparatus includes a butterfly counter for determining the current FFT butterfly being computed. The butterfly counter produces a plurality of butterfly carries. A rank counter for determining the rank of said current FFT butterfly being computed is also included, and a rank number is produced therefrom. Coupled to the rank and butterfly counters is incremental circuitry, which generates an incremental number in response to the rank number and the butterfly carries. An adder circuitry coupled to the incremental circuitry adds the incremental number and a plurality of memory addresses to produce the FFT data memory addresses.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method for accelerating the memory access and storage speed in an FFT computation is provided. The FFT computation is performed in ranks of FFT butterflies, the method includes the steps of producing initial memory addresses, counting the number of the current butterfly to be computed and producing a plurality of butterfly carry values. Further, the rank of the current butterfly is determined to produce a rank number. An incremental number is produced subsequently in response to the butterfly carry values and the rank number, and the incremental number is added to the initial memory addresses to produce addresses for the current butterfly.

In yet another aspect of the current invention, there is provided apparatus for generating addresses for accessing three twiddle coefficients for computing a plurality of radix-4 FFT butterflies. The apparatus includes butterfly counting circuitry for determining the current FFT butterfly being computed and producing a butterfly count A rank counting circuitry determines the rank of the current FFT butterfly being computed and produces a rank number. Further included is a shift controller coupled to the rank counting circuitry, which controls a shifter that receives the butterfly count, shifts the butterfly count a plurality of places to the left and produces a shifted butterfly count. In addition, circuitry coupled to the shifter adds two zeros as the most significant bits to the shifted butterfly count and produces a first twiddle coefficient address. The second twiddle coefficient address is generated by circuitry coupled to the shifter for adding two zeros as the most significant bit and least significant bit to the shifted butterfly count. An adder circuitry coupled to the shifter and the second address producing circuitry adds the shifted butterfly count and the second address to produce a third twiddle coefficient address.

An important technical advantage of the present invention provides for the capability of storing FFT data in R separate banks of memory, and the ability for reading R correct FFT data from the R banks of memory, where R is the radix number.

Another important technical advantage of the present invention provides for memory addressing apparatus and method which allows for accessing all the data required for an FFT butterfly computation simultaneously, and for accessing the twiddle coefficients for the butterfly substantially simultaneously.

Yet another important technical advantage of the present invention provides for generating read addresses for accessing FFT butterfly input data in a rank simultaneously, and manipulating the read addresses to produce the write addresses for storing the output data from the computation of the same FFT butterfly, so that the output data are stored in different memory banks to allow simultaneous access thereof for FFT butterfly computations of the next rank.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, reference may be made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top-level block diagram of the input and output parameters of a preferred embodiment of the FFT compiler constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow graph representation of a radix-4 decimation-in-frequency (DIF) butterfly;

FIG. 3 is a simplified flow graph representation of a radix-4 DIF butterfly;

FIG. 4 is a flow graph representation of a 64-point radix-4 DIF FFT;

FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram of a preferred embodiment of the FFT pipelined architecture constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a timing diagram of the FFT pipelined architecture;

FIG. 7 is a more detailed block diagram of the preferred embodiment of the FFT pipelined architecture;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a preferred embodiment of the data address generator;

FIG. 9 is a first flowchart representation of a portion of the data address generator;

FIG. 10 is a second flowchart representation of a portion of the data address generator;

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a preferred embodiment of the permutation networks and surrounding circuitry;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a preferred embodiment of the coefficient address generator;

FIG. 13 is a portion of a radix-4 DIF butterfly showing the adding and subtracting computations for the real and imaginary parts of the input data;

FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing the sixteen adders and subtractors required for the most time efficient implementation of the add/subtract computation in a butterfly in the preferred embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a Booth recoding multiplier as known in the art;

FIG. 16 is a block diagram of a layout of the Booth recoding multiplier for multiplying two complex numbers for illustrating the problems associated therewith; and

FIG. 17 is a block diagram of the preferred layout of the Booth recoding multiplier in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The FFT Compiler

FIG. 1 provides an overview of the inputs and outputs of a preferred embodiment of an FFT compiler 10 constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. FFT compiler 10 is capable of receiving a set of design requirements 12 specified by a user. The set of design requirements 12 may include specifications on problem size, word size, accuracy, throughput, and special pre- and post-processing operations. Based on design requirements 12, FFT compiler 10 selects from among a number of architecture styles 1, 2, . . . , k 14-18 one which optimizes the resultant FFT device. The architecture styles offer space and time tradeoffs, which are dependent on user-specified design requirements 12. Additionally, sequential, parallel and pipelined architecture styles are among architecture styles 14-18. Note that although architecture styles 1, 2, . . . , k 14-18 are shown explicitly outside the physical boundaries of FFT compiler 10, the architecture styles are in fact knowledge resident within FFT compiler 10.

Once an architecture style is selected, FFT compiler 10 generates an FFT circuit realization of the selected architecture style. The FFT circuit is generated by first generating large functional blocks of the circuit such as control circuits; memory blocks; clock signal generation circuits, drivers and distribution networks; memory addressing logic; and glue logic as known in the art. These large functional blocks are in turn implemented by generating smaller functional or logic blocks, such as adders, subtractors, multipliers, multiplexers, registers, latches and any combinatorial special function cells.

The FFT circuit realization is then implemented by using instances made from functional blocks stored in a macrocell library 20. Examples of the functional blocks or macrocells include adders, multipliers, registers, multiplexers, logic gates and the like. FFT compiler 10 subsequently generates a semiconductor device specification 22, or more commonly a net list, from which an implementation in silicon may be fabricated as known in the art. Semiconductor device specification 22 includes functional block specifications, interconnection between functional blocks, and layout of the functional blocks and interconnections.

Radix-4 Decimation-In-Frequency FFT

A more efficient method of computing the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) is the radix-4 decimation-infrequency (DIF) FFT where an N-point FFT is reduced to the computation of four N/4-point FFTs. Referring to FIG. 2, a radix-4 DIF FFT flow diagram, more commonly known as a butterfly, is shown. The computation in the radix-4 DIF FFT butterfly may be represented in the following equations: ##EQU1## where W_(n) =e^(-j2)π/N, and W_(N) is commonly known as the twiddle factor or twiddle coefficient. Note that each radix-4 DIF butterfly requires four complex data inputs and only three twiddle coefficients for its evaluation (W_(N) ⁰ is, by definition, 1), and produces four complex data outputs. The radix-4 DIF butterfly computation may also be partitioned into a scaling and sum section and a complex multiplication section.

Accordingly, an N-point DFT may be evaluated as a collection of 4-point butterflies, where N is a power of four. FIG. 3 shows a simpler graphical representation of 10 the radix-4 DIF FFT butterfly, which explicitly shows the four inputs x(n), x(n+N/4), x(n+N/2) and x(n+3N/4) and the four outputs y(n), y(n+N/4), y(n+N/2) and y(n+3N/4).

A graphical representation of a 64-point, radix-4 DIF FFT is shown in FIG. 4. Several characteristics of radix-4 DIF FFT are worth noting here. In an N-point, radix-4 FFT algorithm, the frequency decimation process passes through a total of M ranks, where N=4^(M) with N/4 4-point butterflies per rank. The total number of butterflies in an N-point radix-4 DIF FFT is (N/4)log₄ N. Therefore, in the example shown in FIG. 4, there are three ranks of 16 butterflies per rank with a total of 48 butterflies for N=64.

Note that the four data inputs for each butterfly and the four data outputs from each butterfly exhibit certain regularity in the positions from which they originate and terminate. For example, the first butterfly of rank one has four inputs from positions 0, 16, 32 and 48. The numerical spacing between the positions is 16. The first butterfly of rank two has four inputs from positions 0, 4, 8, 12, where the spacing is 4. For the butterflies in rank three, the spacing of the inputs becomes one. Therefore, it seems that there exists an incremental spacing of base four.

Further note that the N input data samples of the input signal x(n) is in normal ascending order, while the order of the N resultant frequency output samples seems scrambled. In fact, the output samples are in digit-reversed order in the quaternary system. For example, the data at location 30 (corresponding to number 132 in the quaternary system) exchanges positions with the data at location 45 (corresponding to quaternary number 231, digit-reversal of 132). For additional information on the FFT algorithm, please refer to textbooks on the topic of digital signal processing, such as Digital Signal Processing by Alan V. Oppenheim and Ronald W. Schafer.

Pipelined FFT Architecture

Referring to FIG. 5, a block diagram of a pipelined FFT architecture 24 for computing radix-4 DIF FFT is shown. Architecture style 24 is a pipelined architecture in which one butterfly computation is computed in one pipeline cycle. Input data are received and stored in a memory such as a RAM (random access memory) 26. A controller 28 supplies control signals on lines 30 which are coupled to an address generator 32. Address generator 32 is coupled to RAM 26 and supplies read and write addresses thereto on bus 34.

From RAM 26 four data are accessed and supplied to a pipelined data path 36 on lines 38. Pipelined data path 36 is capable of computing a radix-4 DIF butterfly, the computation consisting of 16 additions/subtractions and three complex multiplications. The complex multiplication procedure requires three complex twiddle coefficients, which are stored in preferably at least two coefficient ROMs (read-only memories) 40 and output to pipelined data path on lines 42. In order to read the twiddle coefficients substantially simultaneously, two ROMs are used for storage purpose thereof. If space allows, three ROMs may be used so that all three coefficients are accessed and available simultaneously. The addresses for reading the correct twiddle coefficients from coefficient ROMs 40 are generated in a coefficient address generator 44 and supplied to coefficient ROMs 40 on lines 46. Coefficient address generator 44 receives control signals from controller 28 on lines 48. The output of pipelined data path 36 is coupled to RAM 26 by lines 50, so that the output generated from each butterfly computation may be stored in RAM 26.

Referring to FIG. 6 for the timing of pipelined FFT architecture 24, two time periods, t_(sys1) and t_(sys2), consisting of two system clock periods are shown. During t_(sys1), four input data are accessed from RAM 26 and placed at the input of pipelined data path 36. Concurrently, during t_(sys1), the first two twiddle coefficients are read from ROMs 40 and also supplied to pipelined data path 36.

In the next period of the system clock, t_(sys2), the third coefficient is read from ROMs 40 and also supplied to pipelined data path 36. During the same time period, t_(sys2), the outputs become available at the output of pipelined data path 36 and are stored in RAM 26. It follows that a pipeline delay is two periods of the system clock, or (t_(sys1) +t_(sys2)), which will be referred to as one pipeline cycle.

The details of architecture style 24 are shown in FIG. 7, where like elements are referred to by like numerals in FIG. 6. Input data has a path 70 into a permutation network 72. Permutation network 72 is coupled to the input of a pipeline register 74, the output of which is coupled to four banks of RAM 26: RAM0, RAM1, RAM2 and RAM3, 76-82, respectively. Address generator 32 is coupled to each bank of RAM 76-82 via lines 34. Address generator 32 is controlled by controller 28 and coupled thereto via lines 30. The output of RAM0, . . . RAM3 76-82 are coupled to the input of a pipeline register 84, the output of which is coupled to the input of another permutation network 86. The output of permutation network 86 is coupled to the input of a scaling circuit 88, the output of which is coupled to the input of pipelined data path 36. The operation of both permutation network 86 and scaling circuit 88 are controlled by controller 28, the control signals being transported on lines 90 and 92, respectively.

Pipelined data path 36 includes a pipeline register 94. From pipeline register 94, the data are supplied to a bank of eight adders/subtractors 96. The output of adders/subtractors 96 is coupled to the input of yet another pipeline register 98. Subsequently, the output of pipeline register 98 is coupled to another eight adders/subtractors 100, and the output of adders/subtractors 100 is coupled to a pipeline register 102. Coefficient address generator 44, coupled to controller 28 via lines 48, generates addresses on lines 46 for accessing coefficient ROMs 40. The output of coefficient ROMs 40 is coupled to pipeline register 102 via lines 42. Three of the four outputs of pipeline register 102 are coupled to a first stage of twelve multipliers 104, followed by a pipeline register 106 and a second stage of twelve multipliers 108. The output of multipliers 108 is coupled to a pipeline register 110, followed by six adders/subtractors 112 and another pipeline register 114. Note that a data path 116 supplies one of the four outputs from pipeline register 102 to subsequent pipeline registers 102, 106, 110 and 114 without passing through multipliers 104 and 108 and adders/subtractors 112. The output of pipeline register 114 is coupled to a sign-bit detection circuit 118 via lines 50, the output of which is coupled to the input of permutation network 72 via lines 120.

The operations of pipelined FFT architecture 24 will become more apparent from the discussion below on the major components thereof.

Address Generator

The address generator 32 must ensure that the correct data is presented to pipelined data path 36 at the beginning of each pipeline cycle, and that the output data from pipelined data path 36 is stored in RAM 26 at the end of each pipeline cycle. As discussed above, each radix-4 DIF butterfly computation requires four complex data

inputs RAM 26 has four banks RAM0 to RAM3 76-82 so that the four data required for each butterfly computation can be extracted concurrently from RAM banks 76-82. During the same pipeline cycle, the output data from pipelined data path 36 must be stored in the correct bank of RAM 26 to be ready for subsequent computations, even though the data are shuffled when going from rank to rank during the computations.

Referring to FIG. 8, a block diagram of address generator 32 constructed in accordance with the present invention is shown. A reset circuit 130 receives timing and control signals from controller 28 on lines 30. Reset circuit 130 is coupled to a butterfly counter 132, whose carry values are output on lines 133 and provided to an increment circuit 134. The carry values on line 133 consist of the carry value into the least significant bit of butterfly counter 132 and the second carry value, the fourth carry value, etc. In other words, only every other carry value from the binary counter elements is output onto lines 133, since radix-4 DIF FFT is being implemented. If radix-2 FFT is being implemented, every carry value is needed. Similarly, if radix-8 FFT is being implemented, only every third carry value is required to generate the address incremental values. Butterfly counter 132 is constructed from a plurality of cascaded binary counter elements (not shown), each receiving a carry signal from its less significant counter element. The construction of such counters are known in the art of digital logic circuits, the details of which need not be discussed herein.

A rank counter 135 is coupled to reset circuit 130 and is further coupled to increment circuit 134 composed of circuits of varying incremental values which increase by base four. These circuits compute the incremental address values for each carry line coming from butterfly counter 132. For N=1024 and radix-4, increment circuit 134 includes a one's increment circuit 136, a four's increment circuit 138, a 16's increment circuit 140 and a 64's increment circuit 142. The output of increment circuits 136-142 are summed and connected to a common bus 144, which is coupled to one input of four modulo 4 adders 146-152. The output of modulo 4 adders 146-152 are connected to respective address registers 154-160. The output 162-168 from each of address registers 154-160 is fed back to the other input of respective modulo 4 adders 146-152. The address register outputs 162-168 are further coupled to RAM banks 76-82 of RAM 26, respectively.

In operation, butterfly counter 132 and rank counter 135 keep track of which butterfly of which rank is currently being computed, so that the RAM read and write addresses may be derived therefrom. Both counters 132 and 135 are reset or initialized by reset circuit 130, which receives instructions from controller 28 on line 30. The count from rank counter 135 is supplied to increment circuits 136-142. In addition, the carry values from butterfly counter 132 are supplied to increment circuits 136-142. The embodiment shown in FIG. 8 is for a 1024-point radix-4 DIF FFT, where the increment circuits implement one's, four's, 16's and 64's increments.

Address registers 154-160 are initialized with the addresses of the four data for the first butterfly in each rank. Depending on the rank, the initial addresses may vary. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the initial read and write addresses in base four for each branch of a butterfly in a rank are shown in TABLE 1. Note that the last base 4 digit corresponds to the RAM number used for the read/write operation.

                  TABLE 1                                                          ______________________________________                                         RANK 1   00000.sub.4                                                                            11111.sub.4 22222.sub.4                                                                          33333.sub.4                                 RANK 2   00000.sub.4                                                                            01111.sub.4 02222.sub.4                                                                          03333.sub.4                                 RANK 3   00000.sub.4                                                                            00111.sub.4 00222.sub.4                                                                          00333.sub.4                                 RANK 4   00000.sub.4                                                                            00011.sub.4 00022.sub.4                                                                          00033.sub.4                                 RANK 5   00000.sub.4                                                                            00001.sub.4 00002.sub.4                                                                          00003.sub.4                                 ______________________________________                                    

For subsequent butterfly computations, certain of the incremental amounts generated in increment circuit 134 in response to the carry values from butterfly counter 132 are summed and supplied to each modulo 4 adder 146-152. For example, if the least significant carry value into butterfly counter 132 is one, the second carry value and the third least significant carry value in butterfly counter 132 are zero and one, respectively, then the incremental amounts in 1's and 16's increment circuit 136 and 140 are summed. Shown in TABLES 2 and 3 are the read and write incremental values for ranks 1-5 for a 1,024-point FFT. Modulo 4 adders 146-152 adds the addresses in address registers 154-160 and the incremental values as supplied by increment circuit 134. The incremented addresses are output onto lines 162-168 and supplied to RAM banks 76-82, according to the last base 4 digit of the address.

                  TABLE 2                                                          ______________________________________                                         READ     1's     4's         16's  64's                                        ______________________________________                                         RANK 1   00001   00011       00111 01111                                       RANK 2   00001   00011       00111 [11111]                                     RANK 3   00001   00011       [01111]                                                                              10000                                       RANK 4   00001   [00111]     01000 10000                                       RANK 5   [00011] 00100       01000 10000                                       ______________________________________                                    

                  TABLE 3                                                          ______________________________________                                         WRITE    1's     4's         16's  64's                                        ______________________________________                                         RANK 1   00001   00011       00111 01111                                       RANK 2   00001   00011       00111 [10000]                                     RANK 3   00001   00011       [01000]                                                                              10000                                       RANK 4   00001   [00100]     01000 10000                                       RANK 5   [00010] 00100       01000 10000                                       ______________________________________                                    

The logic behind the generation of the data read and write address increments shown in TABLES 2 and 3 may be summarized in the form of a flowchart beginning in block 170 as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. An index c to an array CARRY is initialized to zero in block 171. The values indexed by c in the CARRY array represent the carry values in butterfly counter 132 of address generator 32. In block 172 the value in the CARRY array at location c, or CARRY[c], is compared to one. If the value at CARRY[c]is equal to one, then a loop count d is initialized to zero in block 173. If the comparison in block 172 is false, then execution skips forward, and no increments are generated in the corresponding increment circuit 136-142.

Following block 173, a statement:

    INCR[2*d+1,2*d]=INCR [2*d+1,2*d]+INCR4(d,c,rank)

is executed in block 174. INCR is an array which contains incremental values for each address digit. Since each digit represents two binary bits of address, INCR[1,0] to INCR[9,8] represents digits 0 to 4. INCR4 is a subroutine which determines the increment for each address digit for a certain rank. The statement in block 174 calls the INCR4() subroutine while passing three arguments: d, c, and rank to it.

Referring to FIG. 10, subroutine INCR4 begins in block 175. In block 176, a variable INC is initialized to zero. Subsequently in block 177, the rank value passed to the INCR4 subroutine is subtracted from the total number of ranks, NO-RANK, and the result is set equal to a variable name DIAGONAL₋₋ TEST If value [(c+1)<DIAGONAL₋₋ TEST] OR [RW₋₋ FLAG AND ((c+1)=DIAGONAL₋₋ TEST)] is true in block 178, then d is compared with c in block 179. The RW-FLAG is one for read and zero for write which accounts for the difference between read address increments and write address increments in TABLES 2 and 3. In block 179, it is determined whether d is less than or equal to c. If the comparison is positive in block 179, then the variable INC is set to equal one in block 180 and execution proceeds to block 181. If the conditions in either block 178 or block 179 are false, then execution skips to block 181, where the value (c+1) is compared to DIAGONAL.sub. -- TEST. If (c+1) is greater than or equal to DIAGONAL₋₋ TEST, then the value of d is compared with (c+1) in block 182. If d is equal to (c+1), then the variable INC is set to equal to one in block 183, else execution returns in block 184. Similarly, if the comparisons in either block 181 or 182 are false, then execution skips to RETURN block 184.

Upon returning from the INCR4 subroutine, the value of INC is summed with INCR[2*d+1,2*d] in block 174. Subsequently, the value of d is incremented by one in block 185, and in block 186 it is checked to determine whether d is equal to the total number of ranks, NO-RANK, minus one. If not, execution returns to block 174, if so, execution proceeds to block 187, where the value c is incremented by one. In block 188, it is determined whether c is equal to NO-RANK minus two, if so, execution ends in block 189, else execution loops back to block 172.

The logic in the flowcharts in FIGS. 9 and 10 generates the incremental values shown in tabular format in TABLES 2 and 3. In order to understand that logic, several items are worth noting in TABLES 2 and 3. TABLE 2 shows the read address increments for ranks 1 through 5. Note that the entries on the diagonal have been bracketed. Note further that the read increment entries above the bracketed entries on the diagonal are nothing but successive left-shifted bits, as one goes from one's increment to 64's increment, with the bits shifted in being ones. For example, for rank 1, the entries are successively, 00001, 00011, 00111, and 01111. On the diagonal, however, the entries become the left-shifted version of the entries above each respective diagonal entry, again with the bit shifted in being ones. For example, for rank 3, the diagonal entry is 01111, which is 00111 shifted left one bit, with a one shifted in. Below the diagonal, the entries are equal to the entry above the diagonal entry plus one. For example, for rank 4, the entry 01000 is the entry 00111 above the diagonal entry 01111 plus one.

The pattern changes slightly for write address increments. Referring to TABLE 3, the entries above the diagonal are also successively left-shifted as one goes from one's increment to 64's increment in each rank. The diagonal entries, however, are now the same as the below the diagonal entries which are equal to the entry above the diagonal entries plus one. For example, for rank 3, the diagonal entry 01000 is the entry above the diagonal entry, 00111, plus one. The entries below the diagonal entries are equal to the diagonal entries for each incremental value For example, for 16's increment, entries for ranks 3-5 are all 01000.

With the above-described patterns in mind, the logic behind FIGS. 9 and 10 should be obvious. The subroutine INCR4 tests for whether the current increment desired falls on the diagonal by determining DIAGONAL₋₋ TEST in block 177. It also determines whether read or write address increments are currently being computed by testing a flag RW₋₋ FLAG. Furthermore, depending on the values of c and d, the variable INC is set to equal one, or left to equal zero. The initial addresses for both read and write are the same, as shown in TABLE 1. To further illustrate the address generator and method, shown in TABLES 4 and 5 are read and write addresses, respectively, for the second and third butterflies in ranks 1-5.

                  TABLE 4                                                          ______________________________________                                         (rank, butterfly)                                                              READ   (1,2)     (2,2)   (3,2)   (4,2) (5,2)                                   ______________________________________                                         ADDR.sub.1                                                                            00001     00001   00001   00001 00011                                   ADDR.sub.2                                                                            11112     01112   00112   00012 00012                                   ADDR.sub.3                                                                            22223     02223   00223   00023 00013                                   ADDR.sub.4                                                                            33330     03330   00330   00030 00010                                   ______________________________________                                                (1,3)     (2,3)   (3,3)   (4,3) (5,3)                                   ______________________________________                                         ADDR.sub.1                                                                            00002     00002   00002   00002 00022                                   ADDR.sub.2                                                                            11113     01113   00113   00013 00023                                   ADDR.sub.3                                                                            22220     02220   00220   00020 00020                                   ADDR.sub.4                                                                            33331     03331   00331   00031 00021                                   ______________________________________                                    

                  TABLE 5                                                          ______________________________________                                         (rank, butterfly)                                                              WRITE  (1,2)     (2,2)    (3,2)   (4,2) (5,2)                                  ______________________________________                                         ADDR.sub.1                                                                            00001     00001    00001   00001 00010                                  ADDR.sub.2                                                                            11112     01112    00112   00012 00011                                  ADDR.sub.3                                                                            22223     02223    00223   00023 00012                                  ADDR.sub.4                                                                            33330      033330  00330   00030 00013                                  ______________________________________                                                (1,3)     (2,3)    (3,3)   (4,3) (5,3)                                  ______________________________________                                         ADDR.sub.1                                                                            00002     00002    00002   00002 00020                                  ADDR.sub.2                                                                            11113     01113    00113   00013 00021                                  ADDR.sub.3                                                                            22220     02220    00220   00020 00022                                  ADDR.sub.4                                                                            33331     03331    00331   00031 00023                                  ______________________________________                                    

Permutation Networks

Referring to FIG. 11, permutation networks 72 and 86 are positioned at the input and output sides of RAM banks 76-82 of RAM 26. Permutation network 72 is constructed with a plurality of four-to-one multiplexers 190-193 coupled to the output of sign-bit detection circuit 118 via a bus 194. Multiplexers 190-193 receive control signals WS from the lowest base 4 digit of the write addresses. The output of multiplexers 190-193 are coupled to the inputs of RAM banks 76-82, respectively. The outputs of RAM banks 76-82 are coupled to a second permutation network 86 constructed in like manner as permutation network 72 via a bus 195. Permutation network 86 consists of four-to-one multiplexers 196-199, which receive control signals RS from the lowest base 4 digit of the read addresses. The outputs of multiplexers 196-199 are coupled to scaling circuit 88.

It is important to note that each multiplexer block 190-193 and 196-199 shown in FIG. 11 is representative of a plurality of multiplexers which are required to multiplex all bits of data. For example, in the preferred embodiment where data are 32 bits (16 bits real and 16 bits imaginary), each multiplexer 190-193 and 196-199 is actually 32 four-to-one multiplexers.

In operation, during the first half of a pipeline cycle, one data is read from each RAM bank 76-82 in accordance with the data address generator and method as described above. The two least significant bits of each generated read address for each RAM bank 76-82 are used to control multiplexers 196-199, respectively, as the RS signals. Therefore, in actuality, the RS signals consist of eight individual signals, two for each multiplexer 196-199. Multiplexers 196-199 then multiplex one of the four data present at the input to the output, and are received by scaling circuit 88.

Permutation network 72 operates much in the same fashion as permutation network 86. During the second half of a pipeline cycle, four data are present on bus 194 from sign-bit detection circuit 118. Multiplexers 190-193 are under the control of signals WS consisting of the two least significant bits of each write address, which multiplex one of the four data present at the input to the output. The data are then received by RAM banks 76-82.

Sign-Bit Detection Circuit and Scaling Circuit

As discussed previously in conjunction with FIG. 4, in an N-point, radix-4 FFT algorithm, the frequency decimation process passes through a total of M ranks (N=4^(M)), where the output data from one rank become the input data of the next.

In FFT pipeline architecture 24, as the four butterfly output data leave the last pipeline register 114 in the pipeline data path 36, their widths have essentially doubled from the multiplication process. Each time the DIF process passes through yet another rank, the data size doubles. To prevent data overflowing the capacity of the hardware, the less significant bits in butterfly output data are truncated or right shifted to fit the prescribed width of RAM 26. Conditional scaling is then applied at the beginning of the next rank to improve the dynamic range of subsequent butterfly computations. This conditional scaling is realized by the cooperation of sign-bit detection circuit 118 and scaling circuit 88.

Sign-bit detection circuit 118 determines the largest truncated output data in a rank before the data are saved in RAM 26. This determination entails detecting the number of duplicated sign bits in the largest data value in the rank, which yields the number of bits the data may be scaled or left shifted to improve the dynamic range of the data. In other words, sign-bit detection circuit 118 determines the number of bits all the output data from a rank are to be scaled up, and all the output data from the same rank are scaled up by the same number of bits.

When the computations begin for the next rank, the output data of the previous rank, which were stored in RAM 26, become the input data and are passed to scaling circuit 88. Scaling circuit 88 left shifts the data by the number of bits determined by sign-bit detection circuit 118, and these scaled data are then passed to pipelined data path 36.

Coefficient Address Generator

In each radix-4 butterfly computation, in addition to the four complex data, three complex twiddle coefficients are also required to produce the output data. The twiddle coefficients for angles between 0 and 45 degrees are calculated with known DSP techniques and are stored in coefficient ROMs 40. The memory in coefficient ROMs 40 is duplicated to form two copies of the twiddle coefficients.

Referring to FIG. 12, a block diagram of coefficient address generator 44 is shown. The output of a butterfly counter 200 is coupled to the input of a shifter 202. Shifter 202 may be implemented with a shift register or a series of muliplexers connected to perform the shift function. Shifter 202 is also arranged to receive a number of zeros as input on lines 204. Shifter 202 is coupled to a shift control 206, which controls its shift function. Shift control 206 is coupled to a rank counter 208 for receiving input therefrom. Note that butterfly counter 200 and rank counter 208 perform identical functions as butterfly counter 132 and rank counter 135 of FIG. 8. Therefore, only one butterfly counter and one rank counter may be implemented in controller 28 and their outputs routed to both address generator 32 and coefficient address generator 44.

The output of shifter 202 is subsequently manipulated to form coefficient addresses ADDR₁, ADDR₂ and ADDR₃. For the formation of ADDR₁ on address lines 208, two zeros are added to form the uppermost two bits. Address lines 208 are coupled to coefficient ROMs 40. For forming ADDR₂ on lines 210, one zero is added to form the uppermost bit and another zero is added to form the lowermost bit. ADDR₂ is then fed into the input of a multiplexer (MUX) 212. ADDR₃ is formed by adding ADDR₁ and ADDR₂ in an adder 214, its input connected to lines 208 and 210. The output of adder 214 is coupled to the other input of multiplexer 212. Multiplexer 212 is coupled to a MUX control 216, and the output thereof is supplied on address lines 218 coupled to coefficient ROMs 40.

The coefficient addresses generated by coefficient address generator 44 for each butterfly computation may be expressed in equation form as:

    ADDR.sub.1 =[4.sup.r-1 (b mod N/4.sup.r)] mod N,

    ADDR.sub.2 =[2 * 4.sup.r-1 (b mod N/4.sup.r )] mod N,

and

    ADDR.sub.3 =[3 * 4.sup.r-1 (b mod N/4.sup.r )] mod N,

where

N is the number of points,

b is the butterfly count,

r is the rank count, and

n=log₂ N.

From the foregoing equations, it may be seen that ADDR₂ is twice that of ADDR₁ and ADDR₃ is three times that of ADDR₁. In other words, ADDR₂ added to ADDR₁ yields ADDR₃. This is performed by adder 214. In operation, the butterfly count from counter 200 in (n-2) bits is received by shifter 202, forming the upper (n-2) bits therein. 2(r-1) bits of zeros are also received by shifter 202 on lines 204, which form the lower 2(r-1) bits in shifter 202. Shift control 206 computes 2(r-1) and instructs shifter 202 to shift left by this amount. In effect, the left shift by 2(r-1) bits multiplies the number in shifter by 4^(r-1). The output of shifter 202 consists of the lower (n-2) bits, which in effect yields [4^(r-1) (b mod N/4^(r))]. The subsequent addition of two bits with value zero yields addresses of n bits.

Referring back to FIG. 6 for the timing of coefficient access, it may be seen that three coefficient accesses are required within one pipeline cycle. This is accomplished by accessing the first and second coefficients for butterfly first and second branches in the first half of the pipeline cycle, and then accessing the third coefficient in the second half of the same pipeline cycle. Multiplexer 212 is thus controlled by MUX control 216 to provide the multiplexing of ADDR₂ and ADDR₃, so that ADDR₂ is available in the first half of the pipeline cycle and ADDR₃ is available in the second half of the cycle. cl Adders and Subtractors

Referring to FIG. 13, a portion of the radix-4 DIF FFT butterfly diagram is shown. Prior to multiplying to the complex twiddle coefficients, the four complex data D0-D3 are added and/or subtracted to form output data 00-03 as shown. Values 1, -1, j and -j shown on those branches indicate multipliers. Since each complex data D0-D3 has a real part D0r-D3r and an imaginary part D0i-D3i, the total number of additions and subtractions to compute 00-03 is 16.

In order to compute the 16 additions and subtractions for each butterfly in a time efficient manner, 16 adders or subtractors are required as shown in FIG. 14. Therefore, FFT architecture includes a first bank of eight adders/subtractors 96 and a second bank of eight adders/subtractors 100 to perform the first computation portion of a radix-4 butterfly.

Interleaved Complex Multiplier

In the second computation portion of a radix-4 butterfly, the output data 00-03 from adders/subtractors 96 and 100 are multiplied with complex twiddle coefficients. Recall that since W_(N) ⁰ is, by definition, equal to one, only three complex multiplications are actually performed. Each 5 complex multiplication may be represented as:

    M+jN=(A+jB) * (X+jY),

or equivalently, as the following two equations:

    M=A * X-B * Y, and

    N=A * Y+B * X,

where M is the real part of the complex product, and N is the imaginary part of the complex product. It is evident from the foregoing that one complex multiplication function consisting of multiplying two complex numbers is, in effect, four separate multiplications, one addition and one subtraction. Therefore, the three twiddle coefficient multiplizations are equivalent to a total of twelve multiplications, three additions and three subtractions. Therefore, the most time efficient implementation uses twelve multipliers, three adders and three subtractors.

FIG. 15 shows an eight-bit multiplier, multiplying A7-A0 and B7-B0 and producing a product shown as P15-P0. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, multipliers of the Booth recoding type as shown in FIG. 15 are used. Since the Booth recoding algorithm is well known in the art of logic circuit design, the details of the algorithm will not be discussed herein. However, references such as Digital CMOS Circuit Design by Marco Annaratone may be consulted for details.

In a Booth recoding multiplier, there are four basic building blocks: R, M1, M2, FA. Recoders, R, 240-246 receive inputs B(2J-1), B(2J) and B(2J+1) and produce a sign bit S on lines 248-254. M1 blocks 256-162 generate a "one" at the output lines 264-270 depending on the state of the select lines 272-278. An M2 block, such as block 280, is basically a multiplexer (MUX) which produces at the output 282 one of the inputs 284 and 286, depending on the select input 248. Lastly, an FA, or full adder, such as block 282, adds two numbers present at its input 290, produces a sum on line 292 and generates a carry signal on line 294. A ripple carry adder 296 is used to sum all the 30 partial products to form the final product P15-P0. Note that for eight-bit multiplicand and multiplier, there are four stages 298-304 in the multiplier circuit.

From the foregoing, it is evident that even though the Booth recoding algorithm decreases the number of steps required in the multiplication function, the resultant multiplier circuit and interconnections are still somewhat cumbersome. For the purpose of illustration, four such multipliers, each with four stages 298a-d to 304a-d, Booth recoders 240a-d to 246a-d, and a ripple carry adder (R.C.A.) 296a-d for performing one complex multiplication may be arranged as shown in FIG. 16. In addition, a subtractor 308 and an adder 310 further receive (A * X), (A * Y), (B * X) and (B * Y) to compute the real part M and imaginary part N. Such placement presents serious routing problems not only between the input quantities A, B, X and Y and the various stages of the multipliers, but also from each multiplier to subtractor 308 and adder 310. As discussed above, twelve multipliers are required to achieve the most time efficient implementation of the radix-4 FFT computation. As a result, the total layout area of the multipliers may cause the overall size of the FFT architecture to exceed the area available on a typical integrated circuit device.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, an interleaved complex multiplier implementing the Booth recoding algorithm greatly reduces the total layout area of the multipliers 104 and 108 (FIG. 7). Referring to FIG. 17, a block diagram of an interleaved complex multiplier 306 is shown. Interleaved complex multiplier 306, when compared with the complex multiplier layout shown in FIG. 16, (A * X) stages 298a-304a with their respective recoders 240a-246a are interleaved with (A * Y) stages 298c-304c and their respective recoders 240c-246c. Similarly, (B * X) stages 298b-304b with their respective recoders 240b-246b are interleaved with (B * Y) stages 298d-304d, but share recoders 240a-246a and 240c-246c of (A * X) and (A * Y) stages 298a-304a and 298c-304c. Additionally, ripple carry adders 296a and 296c are stacked and aligned with (A * X) and (A * Y) stages 298a-304a and 298c-304c, and ripple carry adders 296b and 296d are stacked and aligned with (B * X) and (B * Y) stages 298b-304b and 298d-304d. When arranged in the manner shown in FIG. 17, not only is the routing length between the input quantities A, B, X, Y and the multiplier stages reduced, but the area occupied by the multiplier is also reduced since the layout is much more compact and only half as much recoding logic is required. In addition, the output from each multiplier becomes available near the input of subtractor 308 and adder 310, so that routing therebetween is minimal.

It follows that three such interleaved complex multipliers 306 are used to implement the twelve multiplications of the three twiddle coefficient multipliers 104 and 108 and adders/subtractors 112 (FIG. 7). More specifically, the first stage of multipliers 104 includes interleaved partial product generating stages 240a-d, 242a-d, 244a-d and 246a-d of three interleaved complex multipliers, and the second stages of multipliers 108 include ripple carry adders 296a-d of the three interleaved complex multipliers. Six adders/subtractors 112 include one adder and one subtractor for each complex multiplier 310 and 308 to sum the real and imaginary parts of each output.

Note that variations of the Booth recoding multipliers exist and one skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention is not necessarily limited to the Booth recoding multiplier shown in FIG. 15.

Although the present invention has been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. Apparatus for generating memory addresses for accessing and storing data in an FFT computation, said FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) computation computing a plurality of ranks of a plurality of FFT butterflies, comprising:a butterfly counter for determining the current FFT butterfly being computed and producing a plurality of butterfly carries; a rank counter for determining the rank of said current FFT butterfly being computed and producing a rank number; incremental circuitry coupled to said rank counter and said butterfly counter for generating an incremental number in response to said rank number and said plurality of butterfly carries; storage circuitry for storing a plurality of memory addresses; and adder circuitry coupled to said incremental circuitry and said storage circuitry for adding said incremental number and each of said plurality of memory addresses.
 2. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, further comprising reset circuitry for resetting said butterfly and rank counters.
 3. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, wherein said incremental circuitry generates an incremental number of modulo R, where R is a radix number of said FFT.
 4. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 3, wherein said butterfly counter includes a plurality of concatenated modulo R counting elements, each of said plurality of counting elements producing a carry.
 5. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 4, wherein said incremental circuitry produces an incremental number corresponding to the sum of a plurality of modulo R increment values in response to corresponding modulo R counting element carries being present.
 6. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, further produces memory read and write addresses.
 7. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 6, generates said read and write addresses for R banks of memory, each one of R data required for each butterfly stored in a different one of said R banks.
 8. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, further comprising means for determining memory read addresses in response to the rank number and butterfly carries.
 9. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 1, further comprising means for determining memory write addresses in response to the rank number and butterfly carries.
 10. Apparatus for accelerating the memory access and storage speed in an FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) computation, said FFT computed by computing ranks of FFT butterflies, comprising:means for producing initial memory addresses; a butterfly counter for determining the number of butterflies computed and producing a plurality of butterfly carry values; a rank counter for determining the rank of said computed butterfly and producing a rank number; means for producing an incremental number in response to said butterfly carry values and said rank number; and adder circuit for adding said incremental number and said initial memory addresses.
 11. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 10, further comprising reset means for resetting said butterfly and rank counting means.
 12. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 10, wherein said incremental number producing means generates an incremental number of modulo R, where R is a radix number of said FFT.
 13. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 12, wherein said butterfly determining means includes a plurality of concatenated modulo R counting elements, each of said plurality of counting elements producing a carry value.
 14. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 13, wherein said incremental number producing means produces an incremental number corresponding to the sum of a plurality of modulo R increment values in response to corresponding modulo R counting element carries being present.
 15. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 10, further produces memory read and write addresses.
 16. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 16, generates said read and write addresses for R banks of memory, and stores each said R data required for each butterfly in a different one of said R banks.
 17. Apparatus for generating radix-R FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) data addresses, said FFT circuit computes said FFT by computing a plurality of ranks of a plurality of FFT butterflies, each of said radix-R FFT butterflies requiring R data stored in R memory banks, and said apparatus being part of an FFT circuit, comprising:butterfly count circuitry for determining the current FFT butterfly being computed and producing a plurality of butterfly carries; rank count circuitry for determining the rank of said current FFT butterfly being computed and producing a rank number; incremental circuitry coupled to said rank count circuitry and said butterfly count circuitry for generating an incremental number in response to said rank number and said plurality of butterfly carries; R storage circuitry for storing R addresses; and R adders coupled to said incremental circuitry and each coupled to one of said R storage circuitry for adding said incremental number and each of said R addresses.
 18. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 17, further comprising reset circuitry for resetting said butterfly and rank count circuitry.
 19. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 17, wherein said incremental circuitry generates an incremental number of modulo R.
 20. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 17, wherein said butterfly count circuitry includes a plurality of concatenated modulo R counting elements, each of said plurality of counting elements producing a carry.
 21. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 20, wherein said incremental circuitry produces an incremental number corresponding to the sum of modulo R increment values in response to corresponding modulo R counting element carries being present.
 22. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 17, further produces memory read and write addresses in response to said rank number and said butterfly carries.
 23. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 22, stores each said R data required for each butterfly in a different on of said R banks.
 24. A method for accelerating the memory access and storage speed in a FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) computation, said FFT computation include computing ranks of FFT butterflies, said FFT butterflies grouped in ranks, the method comprising the steps of:storing initial memory addresses in an address register; providing a butterfly counter to count the number of the current butterfly to be computed and producing a plurality of butterfly carry values representing a modulo R; providing a rank counter to count the rank of said current butterfly and to generate a rank number; receiving said carry values and said rank number at incremental circuitry, and producing an incremental number from said incremental circuitry in response to said butterfly carry values and said rank number, said incremental circuitry including a one's increment circuit, a 4's increment circuit, a 16's increment circuit and a 64's increment circuit; adding said incremental number and said initial memory addresses; and repeating said above four steps until all butterfly computations are performed.
 25. The method, as set forth in claim 24, wherein said incremental number producing step includes the step of generating an incremental number of modulo R, where R is a radix number of said FFT.
 26. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 25, wherein said butterfly counting step includes producing a plurality of carry values, each carry value representing a modulo R carry.
 27. The method, as set forth in claim 26, wherein said incremental number producing step includes the step of producing an incremental number corresponding to the sum of a plurality of modulo R increment values in response to corresponding modulo R counting element carry values.
 28. The method, as set forth in claim 24, further includes the step of producing both memory read and write addresses in response to said rank numbers and said carry values.
 29. Apparatus for generating addresses for accessing three twiddle coefficients for computing a plurality of radix-4 FFT butterflies, comprising:butterfly counting circuitry for determining the current FFT butterfly being computed and producing a butterfly count; rank counting circuitry for determining the rank of said current FFT butterfly being computed and producing a rank number; a shift controller coupled to said rank counting circuitry; a shifter coupled to said butterfly counter and said shift controller for receiving said butterfly count, shifting said butterfly count a plurality of places to the left in response to said shift controller and producing a shifted butterfly count; means coupled to said shifter for adding two zeros as the most significant bits to said shifted butterfly count and producing a first twiddle coefficient address; means coupled to said shifter for adding two zeros as the most significant bit and least significant bit to said shifted butterfly count and producing a second twiddle coefficient address; and adder circuitry coupled to said shifter and said second address producing means for adding said shifted butterfly count and said second address and producing a third twiddle coefficient address.
 30. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 29, further comprising:means for producing a select signal; and means coupled to said select signal producing means for multiplexing said second twiddle coefficient address and said third twiddle coefficient address in response to said select signal.
 31. A method for generating addresses for accessing three twiddle coefficients for computing an N-point FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) consisting of a plurality of radix-4 FFT butterflies, comprising the steps of:counting the number of the current butterfly to be computed and producing a butterfly count b; providing a rank counter to count the rank of said current butterfly and producing a rank count r; coupling the rank count and the butterfly count to shifter circuitry and shifting said butterfly count; producing a first twiddle coefficient address equal to {4^(r-1) (b mod N/4⁴)} mod N form said shifted butterfly count; producing a second twiddle coefficient address equal to {2 * 4^(r-1) (b mod n/4⁴)} mod N; and coupling said first twiddle coefficient address and said second twiddle coefficient address to address circuitry; adding said first and second twiddle coefficient address to generate a third twiddle coefficient address equal to {3 * 4^(r-1) (b mod N/4⁴)} mod N. 